‘REFERENDUM SHOULD DETERMINE NAGORNO KARABAKH’S FINAL STATUS’
By Tatoul Hakobian

AZG Armenian Daily #184
13/10/2005

Stepanakert Labels ICG’s Second Report ‘one-sided and pro-Azeri’

The International Crisis Group published its second report “Nagorno
Karabakh: A Plan for Peace” on October 11. “The two sides appear close
to agreeing on key principles of a peace deal”, says Sabine Freizer,
Director of Crisis Group’s Caucasus Project. “It is essential that
the governments now begin preparing their people for a compromise”.

“Nagorno Karabakh’s status should ultimately be determined by an
internationally sanctioned referendum with the exclusive participation
of Karabakh Armenians and Azeris”, reads the report. The ICG emphasizes
that the referendum can be held only after the Azeris return to
their homes in Karabakh as well as “an international conference
will determine that NK meets the criteria of statehood”. But before
the referendum the ICG offers the following major steps to take:
withdrawal of Armenia-backed Nagorno Karabakh forces from the occupied
districts of Azerbaijan surrounding the entity (from Aghdam, Fizuli,
Jebrail, Zangelan in the first stage and Kelbajar and Lachin in
the second. The Lachin corridor is supposed to remain a link between
Armenian and Karabakh); renunciation by Azerbaijan of the use of force
to reintegrate the entity and deployment of international peacekeepers
(before withdrawal of Karabakh forces from Kelbajar and Lachin); return
of displaced persons and re-opening of trade and communication links.

When will the referendum take place and what are the possible status
options? The ICG thinks that a referendum is realistic in 10 or 20
years. As a result, Karabakh can get independence, wide autonomy within
Azerbaijan, reunification with Armenia or status of confederation with
Azerbaijan. The ICG suggests leaving Nagorno Karabakh in the structure
of Azerbaijan before the referendum “though in practical terms it
would be self-governing and enjoy an internationally acknowledged
interim status”.

The ICG report is under close scrutiny of authorities in
Stepanakert and comments can be expected in a few days. Yet,
in a phone conversation with daily Azg, Davit Babayan, political
analyst from Karabakh, said that “in general, the second report is
the first one’s continuation. It was prepared with the same spirit
and is clearly pro-Azeri”. Babayan thinks the sequence of regulation
steps unacceptable as offered by the ICG report unacceptable as it
offers first return of territories and displaced Azeris – settlement
of consequences of the conflict – only after which the sides turn
to the status – the cause of the conflict. Moreover, he thinks it
unacceptable to leave Nagorno Karabakh within Azerbaijan before the
day of the referendum.

“This shows that the authors of the report offer no option for conflict
regulation to the sides. Every report has its circles of influence
but when it considers the interests of only one side it throws back
settlement. This second report by the ICG is also one-sided and
pro-Azeris, alas,” Babayan said.

The 40-page repot contains more references to Azeri or pro-Azeri
sources than Armenian and Artsakhi. The cited Armenian sources are
compromising in essence.

TKACHOV: NO XENOPHOBIA IN KRASNODAR REGION’
By Ara Martirosian

AZG Armenian Daily #184
13/10/2005

Answering questions of Armenian journalists whether the region
struggles against racial intolerance, Aleksander Tkachov, governor of
Krasnodar region of Russia, said that there is no xenophobia in the
region and “the rumors are too exaggerated”. He said that there are
more than 300.000 Armenians in the region who are engaged in business
and other spheres. “The Armenians live in the best places: Sochi Anapa,
Gelenjik. There can be no question of xenophobia”, he concluded.

ARMENIAN FAIR IN MOSCOW GATHERS 200.000 VISITORS
By Aghavni Harutyunian

AZG Armenian Daily #184
13/10/2005

Russians Show Interest in Armenian Dairy Products, Dried Fruits
and Juices

“The first open-air fair of Armenian goods in Pushkin Square of
Moscow on September 20-25 gathered around 200.000 visitors”, Vahagn
Movsisian, executive director of Armenian Agency for Development,
told yesterday’s press conference.

The fair was organized within the frameworks of Armenian-Russian
trade-economic cooperation. The Moscow authorities supported the
organizers in opening the fair and did not even charge money for
using the Pushkin Square for two days.

Interestingly, the Muscovite Russians and Armenians were greatly
interested in Armenian cheese, dairy products, dried fruits and
juices. The pavilions selling cheese run out of it in 1.5 hour after
opening the fair; the remaining 20 kg was taken away to put up the
next day.

Among other products on the display there were 48 sorts of Armenian
wines, jewellery, gobelins, goods of ceramic, silverware and canvases
of Armenian painters.

One of the major events of the fair was the sale of self-tuition manual
of Armenian language, 80 percent of which was bought by Russians.

NURIZADE TROUBADOUR OF ARMENIAN CULTURE IN IRAN
By Marietta Khachatrian

AZG Armenian Daily #184
13/10/2005

The conference of Armenian writers of Diaspora hosted this year poet
and translator Ahmad Nurizade, well known to Armenian readers. This
man, who has good command of literary Armenia, has translated numerous
collections of Armenian poetry and prose and books on Armenian
culture and history. In effect, Nurizade has done a great deed in
presenting Armenian literature and culture to the Iranians. He is
considered the founder of Iranian Armenology in his country. The
54 years old writer devoted two decades of his life to promoting
Armenian literature and culture in Iran. He describes the story
of his hard life and acquaintance with the Armenians and Armenian
culture in his three-volume autobiographical novel that is now being
finished. Visiting Armenia every year, he brings his writings of that
year and amazingly there appear to be several books so that one may
wonder when he had time to write so many. Asked what he has written
this year, Nurizade said: “I have published 7 books during the last
months, two in Persian and a book of my Armenian poems. The Persian
translations are a volume of love poems by Vahagn Davtian and poems
of Iranian-Armenian poet Vartan. Now I am working on translation of
Paruyr Sevak’s poems. ”

The efforts of our Iranian friend have been appreciated recently
in Armenia.

He was awarded prizes, invited to talk shows and took part in literary
symposiums. A few days ago the Writers’ Union of Armenia in concert
with Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin awarded him “Kantegh” prize.

HEBREW UNIVERSITY ARMENIAN FACULTY ATTEND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

AZG Armenian Daily #184
13/10/2005

Jerusalem – From 7-9 September, over 60 scholars of Armenian Studies
gathered in Vitoria, Spain for the Tenth General Conference of the
Association Internationale des Etudes Armeniennes (AIEA). AIEA, which
was founded in 1980 by Professor Michael Stone of the Hebrew University
and Professor J.J.S. Weitenberg of Leiden University in Holland, is
an organization of scholars of Armenian Studies, with its centre in
Europe. The suggestion to found the organization was made by Dr. Nira
Stone. Professor Michael Stone is Honourary Life President of AIEA.

The meeting was attended by scholars from all over Europe, America,
Armenia and the Middle East. From the Hebrew University of Jerusalem,
Dr. Sergio La Porta, Professor Michael Stone and doctoral student
Mikayel Arakelian all presented lectures, while Dr. Nira Stone also
participated. They met there Hebrew University Armenian Studies PhD
graduate, Professor Peter Cowe of UCLA, and former Armenian Studies
student Pablo Trojiano who teaches at the Compultensian University
in Madrid. Former visiting researcher Prof. Theo van Lint, Gulbenkian
Professor of Armenian at Oxford University also joined in the Hebrew
University reunion.

All the Armenian Studies faculty from the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem’s Armenian Studies program were there and they all brought
home new and stimulating ideas. They were able to discuss matters
with colleagues, and as a result new directions of cooperative work
are emerging and will soon be announced. The lectures of the Hebrew
University team were enthusiastically received and garnered very
positive reactions.

Professor Stone devoted his lecture to his recently completed
translation of the medieval Armenian epic poem about Adam and
Eve, written by Arakel of Siunik at the beginning of the fifteenth
century. The poem, a complex composition of quite startling beauty,
contains over 5,500 lines of poetry, which Professor Stone translated
into English poetry. It is presently being considered for publication.

Quite different, but equally stimulating, Dr. Sergio La Porta presented
a paper on “The Earliest Armenian Scholia on the Works Attributed to
Dionysius the Areopagite.” Dr. La Porta reported on his most recent
progress in the preparation of an edition and translation of the
Armenian commentary on this highly influential work. He proposed a new
date for the composition of the comments as well as challenging their
modern attributions. In addition to providing a linguistic analysis
of the scholia, Dr. La Porta posited the locus of their production
and the context in which they were composed.

Mikayel Arakelian described in detail the catalogue he has prepared of
illuminated late medieval Armenian manuscripts in Germany. This very
thorough work will make known several hundred unknown or little known
manuscripts, describing their character, context and particularly
their artistic character. Mikayel is writing his doctoral thesis on
the Armenian art of New Julfa.

The Armenian Studies program at the Hebrew University was established
in 1966. It offers BA, MA and PhD degrees. For further information
contact Prof. Michael E. Stone ([email protected]) or Dr. Sergio
La Porta ([email protected]). The Jerusalem Armenian StudiesWeb
Site is:

FOR IMAGE

Panorama
17:28 12/10/05

The company “Synopsis” after operating for a year in the field of
informational technologies has decided to unite with “HPL-Technology,
the “Synopsis” company director Rich Goldman.. said today during the
press conference.

“HPL Technology” is the leader in the field of microcircuits
production. The representative of the “Synopsis” company Haik
Hovhannisyan thinks that the most important thing is to keep image
during all procedures in the informational and technological field.

Besides, the participants are sure about the prosperous perspectives
of two companies in Armenia. /Panorama.am/

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

46% OF AZERI DEPUTIES FOR SETTLING KARABAKH PROBLEM BY FORCE

Pan Armenian
12.10.2005 22:06 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ August-October 2005 the National League of
Journalists with the assistance of the Institute of Open Society
conducted a social survey was among 500 candidates running for the
Azerbaijani parliament in Baku and Sumgait. The survey showed that
22.2% of the respondents suppose that ties with the ruling elite will
help to gain victory at the election.

28.8% consider that affiliation to the opposition can bring
success. 33.40% anchor hopes with financial resources. 62% mark
the settlement of the Karabakh conflict as a priority task of the
parliament. 46% prefer military resolution of the problem, Yerkir
Online reported.

RECURRENT ATTEMPT TO TENSE SITUATION IN SAMTSKHE-JAVAKHETIA

Pan Armenian
13.10.2005 00:29 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ As PanARMENIAN.Net came to know from A-info
agency, on October 12 night in the town of Akhalkalaki of the
Samtskhe-Javakheti region of Georgia unknown persons stuck leaflets
signed by some “Akhaltsikhe Liberation Brigade” to the walls of
buildings. The leaflets tell the Armenian population “to immediately
abandon the region and go to Armenia, Russia or America.” “Otherwise
you will be subjected to genocide like your ancestors in 1915”,
the leaflets say. The Council of the Armenian organizations of
Samtskhe-Javakhetia and the majority of the Akhaltsikhe residents
rated it as a recurrent attempt to provoke the Armenian population of
the region, since tension of the situation is not profitable either
for the Armenian or Georgian party.

ANPP CLOSING POSSIBLE ONLY AFTER CREATION OF ALTERNATIVE ENERGY SOURCES

Pan Armenian
12.10.2005 19:57 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Yesterday Armenian Energy Minister Armen Movsessian
met in Washington with U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman, RA
MFA press center reported. During the meeting Armen Movsessian highly
appreciated the U.S.

assistance to the Armenian energy field. When commenting on the closing
of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant A. Movsessian noted that it can
become possible only after creation of alternative energy sources. He
also noted that Armenia counts on the U.S.’s support as regards the
safety of the NPP.

The parties agreed on examining the possibilities of holding an
Armenian-American energy conference. Samuel Bodman showed interest
in the process of the Iran-Armenia gas pipeline. To note, Armenian
Ambassador to the U.S. Tatul Margarian was also present at the meeting.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

A. AZIMOV: INDIVIDUAL APPROACH TO SOUTH CAUCASIAN STATES NOT TO SERVE EU INTERESTS

Pan Armenian
12.10.2005 23:39 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ When commenting on the EU-South Caucasus relations
Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov stated that
“theoretically the EU can demonstrate individual approach towards
the South Caucasian states, however it will not serve the interests
of the organization in the region, since the role, location, weight
and possibilities of Azerbaijan should be taken into account.” In
his words, the Azerbaijan-EU relations base first of all upon the
Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation.

Besides, Azimov noted, Azerbaijan is included in the EU New
Neighborhood Program and is an essential part of it. “Presently
EU members express various opinions on some issues, which can
result in postponement of the negotiations. In my opinion, these are
temporary political difficulties and the EU like Azerbaijan should be
interested in overcoming them within the shortest terms. This political
misunderstanding will be cleared up in the near future, for Azerbaijan
has always cooperated and will continue cooperation with the European
Union basing on the norm of jus gentium”, Araz Azimov stated. When
touching upon the relations between Baku and the Northern Cyprus,
the Azeri diplomat reminded that Azerbaijan has many times stated
that these relations are bound with “the humanitarian approach of
Azerbaijan towards the Cypriot problem. “A humanitarian element is
present here, however one should keep in mind that these ties are
exercised at an informal level and no conclusions should be made,”
Azimov resumed, Mediamax reports.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress